Adds a transcript_comparison check to VideoCompose._run_final_review
that word-diffs the whisper/whisperx transcript against script.txt and
fails loudly when the TTS engine literally voiced punctuation tokens
(dot, dots, ellipsis, comma, dash, hyphen, period). Chirp3-HD did this
to ellipses in a production run and it slipped past review; now it
cannot.
Also corrects the "tiny background video" gotcha in
skills/core/hyperframes.md. After six renders of blaming HyperFrames
CSS, the real root cause was 640x360 Pexels sources combined with a
fit-and-pad pre-transform — HyperFrames was rendering the letterboxed
input faithfully. Gotcha now walks through the ffprobe diagnostic and
the scale-to-cover fix, and keeps the wrapper-div pattern for the
right reasons (aspect mismatch handling, not framework bug workaround).
Four regression tests cover the new check: punctuation-leak detection,
clean-audio false-positive guard, graceful skip when inputs missing,
and always-present transcript_comparison section.
Surfaces six real traps an agent learns the expensive way: full-frame
videos need BOTH HTML width/height attrs AND `!important` CSS because
the runtime applies inline size from intrinsic dimensions; preview-scrub
matters more than a 60-minute render for visual bugs; legibility comes
from scrims + text-shadow, not from lowering video opacity; downloaded
stock needs dense keyframes (-g 30) before render or parallel capture
times out; --workers 1 is mandatory for video-heavy compositions; the
deterministic-font compiler silently replaces unmapped families like
Space Grotesk, use Outfit/Inter/JetBrains Mono/Poppins instead. Each
gotcha documented with the fix-at-author-time pattern so the next agent
ships a clean first render.
Separates creative grammar (renderer_family) from technical engine
(render_runtime) so HyperFrames can stand alongside Remotion as a
first-class runtime instead of masquerading as a Remotion sub-case.
Locks runtime choice at proposal stage and enforces it end-to-end: the
schemas require it, video_compose routes by it, the reviewer fails
closed on silent swaps, and a parametrized contract test walks every
pipeline manifest to ensure each planning-stage skill explains the
conversation to the user. Adds hyperframes_compose (scaffold/lint/
validate/render/doctor/add_block), a playbook -> CSS style bridge, and
vendored HyperFrames Layer 3 skills from commit d291358, pinned via
PROVENANCE.md for future re-sync. Final_review now records
render_runtime_used and runtime_swap_detected so compose lies are
catchable after the fact.
Seedance 2.0 is now routed as the top-ranked video generator whenever a
premium gateway is available. Touches the tool layer, scoring engine,
cinematic pipeline, and both skill layers so discovery works from every
entry point.
- tools/video/seedance_video: BETA stability, quality_score=0.95, add
reference_to_video operation plus 9 img + 3 vid + 3 audio ceilings,
fix pre-existing upload_image_fal import
- tools/base_tool: surface optional quality_score / success_rate /
latency fields in get_info so the scorer can read them
- lib/scoring: fix reliability enum-vs-string bug that was pinning every
available tool to 0.0, switch to overlap coefficient so rich best_for
descriptions aren't penalized, add premium-cinematic feature bonus
- pipeline_defs/cinematic + cinematic asset-director: add pixabay_music
and freesound_music, restore pixabay-first music default
- cinematic compose-director: mandatory Remotion preflight at stage entry
- New Layer 3 .agents/skills/seedance-2-0/SKILL.md (8-part prompt
structure, multi-shot, lip-sync, reference-to-video, provider landscape)
- New Layer 2 skills/creative/prompting/seedance-prompting.md
- Update ai-video-gen, video-gen-prompting, AGENT_GUIDE, INDEX to flag
Seedance 2.0 as the preferred premium default and make the skill
discoverable from every routing path
Mirror the official GSAP AI skills (greensock/gsap-skills, MIT) into
.agents/skills/ and add the Layer 2 wiring that makes them discoverable
from a fresh context.
GSAP covers animation needs that Remotion primitives strain at:
per-character text reveals (SplitText), SVG shape morphs (MorphSVG),
curved camera paths (MotionPath), stroke-reveal line drawing (DrawSVG),
layout-to-layout flight (Flip), and custom bezier easings (CustomEase).
Also becomes mandatory day-1 knowledge if we wire in HyperFrames later
(HF uses GSAP timelines as its native animation runtime).
Layer 3 adds (.agents/skills/):
- gsap-core, gsap-timeline, gsap-plugins, gsap-utils
- gsap-react, gsap-performance
- gsap-scrolltrigger, gsap-frameworks (situational)
- gsap/README.md — OpenMontage-specific framing and Remotion-safe usage
Layer 2 wiring (the discovery triggers):
- skills/meta/animation-runtime-selector.md — NEW routing meta-skill.
Decision matrix covering Remotion primitives, GSAP plugins, framer-
motion, Lottie, Manim, D3, TerminalScene. Enforces the "keep it
simple" bias: reach for GSAP only when the plugin genuinely earns
its bundle weight.
- skills/pipelines/explainer/asset-director.md — references GSAP for
kinetic typography, multi-step choreography, SVG line draws.
- skills/pipelines/animation/asset-director.md — references GSAP for
logo morphs, motion paths, FLIP transitions, custom easings.
- skills/pipelines/cinematic/asset-director.md — references GSAP for
cinematic camera moves, per-char title reveals, prestige easings.
- AGENT_GUIDE.md — adds a categorized Layer 3 skills table so a fresh-
context agent can find the right skill by what they're trying to do,
plus a pointer to animation-runtime-selector.md for routing.
Determinism: every GSAP use inside Remotion must drive timeline progress
from useCurrentFrame(), never requestAnimationFrame. Three Remotion-safe
patterns are documented in both the gsap/README and the selector skill.
Attribution: https://github.com/greensock/gsap-skills (MIT).
Make synthetic screen recording a first-class, discoverable capability
alongside real OS capture. For CLI / terminal / install-flow demos where
commands and output are predictable, author a `terminal_scene` cut instead
of driving a real screen recorder — deterministic, privacy-safe, pixel-
perfect, and frame-accurate to narration cues.
Components:
- TerminalScene.tsx: window chrome, char-by-char typing, blinking cursor,
scrolling output, non-blocking floating pills, spring-based reveals
- ProviderChip.tsx: rotating badge overlay that cycles through provider
names (used in AI-generated-motion scenes)
- BackgroundVideoLayer + source_in_seconds + backgroundVideo props on
every scene type — supports video-behind-component composition
Discovery chain (six layers, so the next agent finds this without reading
source code):
1. pipeline_defs/screen-demo.yaml — bump to 2.1, declare production_modes
(real_capture, synthetic_terminal) with required_tools, scene_type, and
agent_skills pointers
2. skills/pipelines/screen-demo/idea-director.md — mode-selection table
at brief time; brief.metadata.production_mode contract
3. skills/pipelines/screen-demo/asset-director.md — reads production_mode
and branches asset production (capture+overlays vs steps+narration+
pacing check)
4. .agents/skills/synthetic-screen-recording/SKILL.md — Layer 3 skill with
step kinds (cmd/out/pause/pill), pacing rule, and the frozen-terminal
failure mode captured from the showcase v3 retune
5. AGENT_GUIDE.md — TerminalScene added to Remotion routing; links
SCENE_TYPES.md as the authoritative cut-type registry
6. remotion-composer/SCENE_TYPES.md — new cheat sheet of every cut.type
and overlay.type with required fields, plus a "how to add a new scene
type" section (candidates: ChatTranscript, EditorScene, PrReview,
SlackThread, TicketBoard)
Guardrail:
- lib/verify_scene_pacing.py — reusable trace() and assert_alignment()
helpers that mimic the TerminalScene frame math exactly. Fail loudly
before render if steps burn through too fast or leave the scene frozen.
Teach the agent to automatically use Pixabay AI-generated fantasy clips
for children's content. scene-director.md gets query rewriting rules
(10-row table) and source routing. asset-director.md gets source lock,
visual consistency check, and fallback rules. Root.tsx adds a
CaptionOverlayOnly Remotion composition for transparent caption
rendering used in the TikTok-style subtitle pipeline.
6 API-based adapters: Pixabay Video, Coverr, NARA (U.S. National Archives),
Library of Congress, Pond5 Public Domain, Videvo. 5 scraper-based adapters
for sites without APIs: ESA, NOAA, Mixkit, Dareful, JAXA. All follow the
StockSource protocol and are auto-discovered — no tool code changes needed.
Updated scene-director, asset-director, and idea-director skills with
source routing guidance so agents know which provider to use for which
content type (e.g. nara for historical, noaa for ocean, esa for space).
Also includes: grok_video capability updates (native audio, 1-15s duration,
new aspect ratios), seedance_video tool (Seedance 2.0 via fal.ai),
ProductReveal Remotion composition registration.
Adds a lightweight alternative to the corpus_builder + clip_search pipeline
that skips CLIP embeddings, motion scores, and index files. Uses the same
StockSource adapter protocol so it works with all providers (Pexels,
Archive.org, NASA, Wikimedia, Unsplash). Asset-director skill now documents
both fast path (direct search) and standard path (corpus + CLIP retrieval).
Pipeline manifest updated to make corpus tools optional.
End-tag now composited over final body footage (ProRes 4444 with alpha)
instead of concatenated as a black card. Updated idea-director,
edit-director, compose-director, and pipeline manifest with overlay-first
instructions. Default Google TTS voice changed from Neural2-D to
Chirp3-HD-Orus across tool code and docs.
User override during the audit runs made music and an end-tag MANDATORY
defaults for documentary-montage (narration stays optional). This commit
codifies those defaults into the pipeline manifest + director skills and
ships the Remotion end-tag component that the compose stage now
concatenates after the FFmpeg body.
Changes:
- pipeline_defs/documentary-montage.yaml: idea/edit/compose stages now
require music_plan and end_tag_plan to be present; opt-out requires
an explicit user note recorded in metadata.
- skills/pipelines/documentary-montage/idea-director.md: rewrote sections
4 (music MANDATORY), 5 (end-tag MANDATORY with shape
{text,palette,duration_seconds,render_engine:remotion,component:EndTag}),
6 (narration OPTIONAL), 7 (updated brief JSON shape), 8 (quality gate).
Common Pitfalls grew two entries covering silent-contract drift and
end-tag omission.
- skills/pipelines/documentary-montage/compose-director.md: section 4
now stops on music-contract violation; new section 4b documents the
two-engine flow (FFmpeg body -> npx remotion render EndTag -> ffmpeg
concat). Quality gate checks render_report.metadata.music_mixed and
end_tag_rendered.
- remotion-composer/src/components/EndTag.tsx (new): bold uppercase
typographic end-card with animated 0->100% underline draw-in and a
single left-to-right shimmer sweep. Supports cool_offwhite_on_black
and warm_ivory_on_black palettes. Renders at 1920x1080 @ 30fps.
- remotion-composer/src/Root.tsx: register EndTag as a first-class
composition (durationInFrames=165, 5.5s hold) so it can be rendered
standalone via the Remotion CLI with --props overrides.
New end-to-end pipeline for building thematic documentary montages from
a locally-indexed corpus of free stock footage (Pexels, Archive.org,
NASA). The agent builds a project-local corpus, CLIP-ranks candidates
per scene slot, edits with motion-aware arc logic, and composes via
ffmpeg. No paid APIs required for the full path.
Pipeline definition and director skills:
- pipeline_defs/documentary-montage.yaml: 5-stage manifest
(idea -> scene_plan -> assets -> edit -> compose)
- skills/pipelines/documentary-montage/: 6 director skills
(executive-producer + idea/scene/asset/edit/compose directors)
Corpus and retrieval infrastructure:
- tools/video/corpus_builder.py: multi-source stock fan-out with
resumable append-only corpus index
- tools/video/clip_search.py: CLIP ViT-B/32 retrieval —
rank_for_slot, find_similar_set, diversify, stats
- tools/video/stock_sources/: base + pexels + archive_org + nasa
adapters with a pluggable BaseStockSource contract
- lib/clip_embedder.py: CLIP wrapper
- lib/corpus.py: corpus schema, jsonl append/read, motion-score
caching
video_compose fix rolled in because any concat-based pipeline depends
on it:
- Replace ambiguous -to with -t duration (was double-trimming cuts)
- Force re-encode + normalize to 1920x1080 @ 30fps (was keyframe-
snapping with -c copy and breaking concat on mixed-source corpora)
- Add silent-audio anullsrc fallback for clips without an audio
stream
README: add Documentary Montage row to the pipeline table and bump
the pipeline count from 11 to 12.
Compose-director had contradictory instructions: Step 2 described Remotion
captions/audio, but Steps 5/5b gave detailed FFmpeg code that agents followed
instead. This caused three failures in production: FFmpeg subtitles instead of
Remotion CaptionOverlay, missing audio (mixed externally but never embedded in
Remotion props), and skipped audio verification in post-render review.
Changes:
- compose-director: Remotion is now DEFAULT for audio, captions, text overlays;
FFmpeg is labeled FALLBACK only. Post-render review has mandatory ffprobe gate
and audio transcription with explicit stop conditions.
- remotion.md: routing table updated (captions/audio → Remotion), added universal
Post-Render Verification Protocol for all pipelines (only 2/10 had one).
- scene-director, asset-director: added pitfall for AI-generated text in CTA
screens — must use Remotion text_card for verbatim text.
- image-provider-usage: added Recraft V4 caveat (style param causes 422 on fal.ai).
- recraft_image.py: documented the style parameter 422 issue inline.
- AGENT_GUIDE.md: add "never read source code" rule — skills are the
interface, not .py files
- animation.yaml: add Layer 2 skill-first guardrail in assets stage
- video-reference-analyst.md: Step 4b now mandates Layer 2 before Layer 3,
explicitly forbids reading implementation code
- CinematicRenderer: add TikTok-style CaptionOverlay and separate music
track support (narration + music as independent audio layers)
- cinematic/types.ts: add CinematicCaptionConfig and music prop types
Chirp3-HD is near-free ($0.003 vs $0.30+ per script), expressive,
24kHz, and available without quota limits. ElevenLabs demoted to
voice-cloning-only recommendation.
New Step 4b requires the agent to read agent_skills from every tool
before writing generation prompts. Discovered during UAT: agent
generated video clips, images, and TTS without reading provider-specific
prompting guidance, violating AGENT_GUIDE governance.
Proposals must now specify clip duration strategy (prefer 10s over 5s
to halve API costs) and list Layer 3 skills that must be read before
generating assets. Both were governance gaps found during UAT.
Agent must run tts_selector preflight to check available providers
instead of defaulting to ElevenLabs. Supports ElevenLabs, Google TTS,
OpenAI TTS, and Piper (offline).
The agent must lock the audio approach (single narrator vs. character
dialogue vs. both) during Step 3, not defer it to script/compose stage.
Proposals now include voice casting with specific voice IDs.
Remotion is now the default composition engine for ALL final renders
when available — video clips, images, mixed content. FFmpeg is only
used as fallback when Remotion is not installed or for standalone
operations (trim, transcode). Also fixes three FFmpeg fallback bugs:
profile + copy codec conflict, stream order mapping, and segment
seeking for audio-first containers.
The reference analyst skill went straight from capability audit to
creative proposals with no research. This caused the agent to propose
concepts based solely on the reference analysis and its own knowledge,
missing content landscape context, technique best practices, and
subject-matter depth.
Added Step 3b between critical questions and creative proposals:
- Content landscape scan (3-5 similar existing videos)
- Style/technique research (AI model strengths, prompting patterns)
- Subject-matter research (facts, tropes, hooks)
- 2-3 minute time budget — lightweight, not full research-director
The AGENT_GUIDE establishes Remotion as the preferred composition engine
over FFmpeg, but the reference analyst skill was presenting them as peer
options. This caused the agent to default to FFmpeg during proposals.
- Capability audit template now labels Remotion as "preferred" and FFmpeg
as "fallback only"
- Added explicit composition engine priority note
- Proposal template separates Composition and Motion as distinct lines
Video analyzer now uses Farneback dense optical flow to classify each
scene as motion_clip, animated_still, or static_image. This lets the
agent correctly identify whether a reference video uses AI-generated
video clips vs still images with pan/zoom — and plan the right pipeline.
Changes:
- video_analyzer.py: new Step 3b with _classify_scene_motion() and
_read_frame_at() helpers; updated _needs_motion() to use per-scene
motion data instead of pacing heuristic alone
- video-reference-analyst.md: added Motion line to summary template
and instructions to read motion_type field before proposing tools
Implements the 2026-04-02 transformation spec (Phases 1-8) and fixes all
critical bugs found during 5-pipeline E2E testing.
Governance & Decision Intelligence:
- Pipeline-specific stage order in checkpoint (replaces global STAGES list)
- Provider scoring engine (lib/scoring.py) with 7-dimension weighted ranking
- Decision log artifact enforced at proposal/idea stage across all 10 pipelines
- Delivery promise classifier prevents silent motion-to-still downgrades
- Structured shot language in scene_plan schema (camera, lens, lighting, DOF)
- Variation checker and slideshow risk scorer block samey output before render
- Creative intake, capability extension, and creative-intake meta skills
- Final self-review artifact with 5 mandatory checks before presenting output
- Source media review contract for user-supplied footage
Render & Theme System:
- Remotion AnimatedBackground now derives colors from playbook (no more hardcoded
dark blue fintech gradient on every video)
- video_compose builds custom ThemeConfig from playbook YAML colors/fonts —
custom playbooks flow through to Remotion automatically
- Explainer component wires theme to all child components (charts, cards, etc.)
- resolveAsset() handles absolute paths on Windows/Unix via file:// URIs
- RENDERER_FAMILY_MAP synced with actual Remotion compositions
Critical Bug Fixes:
- Windows npx subprocess: run_command() resolves .cmd wrappers via shutil.which()
- Silent renderer downgrade: Remotion failure now returns explicit error with
options instead of silently falling back to FFmpeg
- .env inline comment parsing strips trailing # comments from API keys
- concat_path UnboundLocalError in video_compose finally block
- audio_mixer and showcase_card capture=True kwarg bug
- Selector estimate_cost() calls fixed (_select_tool -> _select_best_tool)
- asset_manifest schema expanded with provider, license, subtype fields
- screen-demo subtitle_gen moved from required to optional tools
- Duration drift detection in post-render final review (>25% warns)
Add green_screen_processor (auto-detect + rembg fallback) and
green_screen_composite (4 layout presets with alpha compositing) tools
to automate the full keying-to-composite pipeline.
Remotion: add AnimatedBackground with gradient mesh and floating orbs
to Explainer, fix caption burn tool (remove entry point arg, auto-detect
dimensions, extend TalkingHead duration to 300s).
Update scene-director, compose-director, and asset-director skill docs
with green screen workflow steps and component constraints.
Scene-director rewrite: agent now watches footage, understands content, and proposes
creative overlays (charts, stats, key terms, comparisons) before building anything.
Presents enhancement plan to user for approval before proceeding.
Compose-director fixes from Round 1 verification:
- eye_enhance: now explicitly required, not silently skippable
- Caption positioning: explicit MarginV=160 for 9:16, never center
- Final encode: mandatory with target file size table
- ASR corrections: new Step 2b to scan transcript and build corrections dict
- Overlay compositing: new Step 3b for burning approved graphics onto footage
Asset-director rewrite: generates Remotion overlay assets (callouts, stat cards,
charts, comparisons) from scene plan. Includes overlay type → Remotion cut mapping
table and dark theme requirements.
Bug fixes found during subagent verification:
- remotion_caption_burn.py: fix run_command API, add npx.cmd for Windows
- visual_qa.py: fix run_command API (3 places), Windows /dev/null → NUL
New tools: face_tracker, visual_qa, eye_enhance, auto_reframe, remotion_caption_burn, showcase_card, silence_cutter. Updated audio_mixer with segmented_music operation and subtitle_gen with ASR corrections. Registered TalkingHead composition in Root.tsx. Rewrote compose/edit/scene director skills for full enhancement chain, Remotion captions, multi-clip assembly, and visual QA. Gitignore cleanup: exclude test demo-props, downloaded music, and generated images.
Add anime_scene rendering engine (AnimeScene + ParticleOverlay components) with multi-image
crossfade, 9 camera motion types, 5 particle systems, and cinematic lighting overlays.
Fix critical Remotion durationInFrames footgun by passing sceneDurationSeconds from parent.
Add audio offset/loop support in Explainer for skipping quiet music intros.
New tools: audio_energy.py analyzes per-second loudness via ebur128 to find optimal music
offset and detect when looping is needed.
Update all 6 animation pipeline skills (proposal, scene, asset, compose, executive-producer,
remotion.md) with battle-tested image_animation workflow including tool availability scan,
FLUX multi-image generation, composition JSON format, pre-render validation, and post-render
self-review.
Add 3 demo compositions (Candyland, Mori no Seishin, Deep Ocean) and anime-ghibli style
playbook. Update README with 3 anime video showcases and animation prompts. Add Animation
Pipeline section to PROMPT_GALLERY.md.
Prove that adding one API key (OPENAI_API_KEY) to the zero-key foundation
produces dramatically better videos for ~$0.69 each. Two compositions built:
The Abyss (deep ocean visual essay) and VOID (neural interface product ad).
New tools:
- audio_probe: ffprobe wrapper with probe_duration() helper
- composition_validator: pre-render checks (asset existence, audio-video sync)
- pixabay_music: royalty-free music scraper (no API key needed)
- freesound_music: Freesound API search + download
Remotion upgrades:
- BackgroundImageLayer: AI images behind data scenes with ken-burns + dark overlay
- Gradient support: all 9 components changed from backgroundColor to background CSS
- CaptionOverlay: word spacing fix, WhisperX word-level subtitles
- HeroTitle: reduced overlay opacity so background images show through
Process codified in agent skills:
- compose-director: audio acquisition flow (present user with voice/music/subtitle
options), mandatory pre-render validation, post-render self-review (extract
frames + transcribe + inspect + present findings to user)
- scene-director: narration duration budgeting (word budget from video duration)
- remotion skill: pre-render validation section
- TTS tool: now returns audio_duration_seconds in result
README updated with VOID product ad video embed.
Fix ComparisonCard and CalloutBox dark-theme passthrough in SceneRenderer.
Add 8 demo-props JSON files (3 fixed originals + 5 new compositions).
Update scene-director and compose-director skills with all 10 Remotion
scene types and zero-key rendering guidance. Document the proven
all-dark-background formula in remotion.md. Add cinematic renderer,
onboarding skill, prompt gallery, and demo render script.
- Add cross-pipeline Music Plan requirement to AGENT_GUIDE User-Facing Planning Protocol
- Add Step 5: Music Plan to cinematic idea-director with library/API/BYO options
- Add music plan resolution to cinematic quality gate
- Ensures agent surfaces music situation before production starts, not at asset stage
calesthio